Can anyone tell me their favorite ruins on the Yucatan? Will be going to Merida for 9 fab days at the end of this month. Read about the famous ones, perhaps out of the way would be more interesting. Traveling with an older person, can't do a big hike thing, only like a two day trek. Thanks.

It's been a number of years since we stayed in Merida and traveled to both Chichen Itza and Uxmal. I absolutely loved Uxmal and we had overnights at both sites. The light show at Uxmal was wonderful. There are a number of sites near Uxmal: Labna, Sayil, etc. that we have not visited.

We visited Coba during a stay in Cancun, but it did require a lot of walking so might not be an ideal site for you. It's deep in the jungle and we had an overnight there as well. We drove down and the turn-off to Coba is near Tulum, the only site built on the coast. It's a smaller site but interesting.

Of those we have visited I think Uxmal is my favorite.

We've seen Coba, Chichen Itza and Tulum (unfortunately we didn't make it to Uxmal...one day).
It's hard to say which one is a favorite. They're all different and unique.
I can tell you which of those 3 would be easier and harder to do with an older person.
Tulum is the smallest and the least spread out of the 3. You can do that tour fairly quickly. Parking is not close to the ruins but you can hop on a "tractor-train" that will take you to the entrance.
Both Coba and Chichen Itza are big sites and very spread out. But there's one thing you can do at Coba that you can't do at Chichen Itza. At Coba, you can hire a guy on bicycle who will take you around. All those guys can be found at the entrance. The bicycles have comfortable seatings in the front of them. We used one because we had our toddler with us. Doing that is the PERFECT option for an older person, a baby/toddler or someone who's not in great physical shape. I can't remember the cost but it was not expensive at all.

I would definitely plan a trip to Uxmal, not to be missed! Plus Chichen Itza if you have the time. There is a route to take from Merida that is a loop that encompasses several ruins near Merida. Any guidebook will have the route marked. if you have the time I also recommend the city of Izamal (the yellow city) Wonderful! You will love Merida

My recommendation would be Uxmal and the smaller "Puuc hills" cities Sayil, Labnah, Kabeh et al.

These cities have elaborately decorated facades which I found much more interesting than the blander buildings at Chichen Itza and Tulum. You will most likely have them to yourself, or see at most a few other tourists. CI is built on a huge scale which your elder companion may find difficult. And Tulum -- well Tulum is hotter than blazes, but the setting is incomparable.

In addition the smaller Puuc cities are easily navigated.

They lie about 1 1/2 hours south of Merida. Ideally, you could stay locally, tour Uxmal, rest for the afternoon, and tour the cities the next morning.

If you do go to Chichen Itza, there is a very interesting city about 20 miles away called Ek Balam. However, the main attraction is a collection of high relief figures well up on a pyramid -- might be a difficult climb (easier, however, than the Castillo at CI).

Haven't been to Coba yet, but looking forward to it.